Michigan Vs. UCLA, Maui Invitational Third-Place Game: Wolverines Cruise To 79-63 Win

The UCLA Bruins’ slide continued in Hawaii on Wednesday as they faced the Michigan Wolverines for third-place in the Maui Invitational. UCLA opened the season with surprising losses to Loyola Marymount and Middle Tennessee State before winning its first game earlier in the week against Chaminade. Michigan, on the other hand, came into the third-place matchup at 4-1, with only a Maui Invitational loss to Duke serving as a blemish on their record.

At one point, the Bruins looked to be right in the thick of the game, trailing by eight at the half and making a run in the second to put Michigan on edge. But it was the Wolverines that were able to find another gear, pushing their lead to 20 with just over two minutes to go, triggering the mass substitutions on both sides of the floor. By the time it was over, Michigan had itself a 79-63 win to cap its Maui trip.

Zack Nowak scored a game-high 22 points in the win for the Wolverines. Tim Hardaway Jr. added 20 points, five assists and three rebounds. Travis Wear led UCLA with 16 points, with Josh Smith adding 12 points and five rebounds in the loss.

The win gives Michigan third-place at the Maui invitational. UCLA came away from Maui with one win, over Chaminade, before losing to Kansas and the Wolverines.

For more on this game, head over to Maize N Brew and SB Nation Detroit, for the Michigan side of things, or SB Nation Los Angeles and Bruins Nation, for the UCLA side of the coin.